Rare Crayford seeks fresh home
If ever a car needed some love, it’s this 1975 Ford Cortina GT with Crayford convertible conversion. Owner Marc Powell had five consecutive Cortina daily drivers before moving on to other classics, but then returned to Fords: “I fancied a Mk2 Crayford Cortina but the ones I saw were scruffy.”
He found GOV 218N in Kent in May 1993; it had been in an accident, but a new offside-rear quarter had been fitted. Powell drove it back to Liverpool and used it regularly until 1998 when he took it off the road, garaging it at first and later storing it outside.
He applied for a restoration course, but it was full so he agreed that the students could work on the car: “It was stripped of its interior and braced all round inside to keep its shape and strength.” When the course ended, the car had to be moved and Powell found it had received some panel damage, plus various items had gone missing.
The Cortina moved to a friend’s workshop but no work was done so it returned to Liverpool, by then minus its seats, and was stored outside under a sheet. Last year, Powell finally went to retrieve the Crayford: “I was shocked and disappointed to see how much it had deteriorated. I would be okay with the mechanicals, but the task of welding it is too much for me.”
He feels the Cortina, one of 400 converted and around 25 survivors known to the Crayford Convertible Car Club, needs a good home. Email marcrp1@gmail.com
“I was shocked to see how much it had deteriorated – I would be okay with the mechanicals, but the task of welding it is too great”